ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on one of the areas studied by anthropological genetics is the relationship between population history and genetic variation. It explores the use of genetics to reconstruct the history of human populations. The book deals with the search for human history using genetic data. It looks at one of those groups of early humans that are often claimed to have become extinct–the enigmatic Neandertals of Europe and the Middle East. The book also deals with the question of geographic origins but focuses on a case where humans "recently" moved into a previously uninhabited region–the Pacific Islands. It examines the relationship between genetics and history in a single nation–Ireland. The book also examines three case studies of admixture.
